


Better Luck This Time

by All_My_Characters_Are_Dead



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Gen, M/M, Minor Character Death, Minor Violence, deaths are off screen, none of them are Aone (surprisingly)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-27
Updated: 2016-05-27
Packaged: 2018-07-10 12:18:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,045
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6984772
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/All_My_Characters_Are_Dead/pseuds/All_My_Characters_Are_Dead
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Iwaizumi is one of the top agents working for Daishou, and the last thing he needs is a new partner. Unfortunately, Daishou is assigning him one anyway.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Better Luck This Time

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Trashcan_Kitty](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Trashcan_Kitty/gifts), [A_Sirens_Lullaby](https://archiveofourown.org/users/A_Sirens_Lullaby/gifts).



> I blame fanart and two very specific people for this, and you know who you are.  
> For trashcan_kitty because this is absolutely her fault, and for A_Sirens_Lullaby because she helped me to keep Aone's deaths to the current 3, and also saved Suga's life.

Iwaizumi scowled up at the cheerful brunet he was apparently going to be paired with from now on. He didn’t like rookies, he didn’t like agents who were this cheerful, and he especially didn’t like having to look up at him to scowl. 

“I don’t need a junior partner,” Iwaizumi snapped, turning his glare on his boss, one - altogether too pleased with himself at the moment, despite the perfectly calm expression he wore - Daishou Suguru. 

“You can’t keep working alone, and Oikawa is plenty experienced,” Daishou replied, tone as polite as always. “Please, try to-” Oikawa moved, apparently trying to prove himself by catching Iwaizumi off guard. He lunged, and small blades seemed to appear between his fingers as he lashed out. Iwaizumi, however, was Daishou’s top agent for a reason, and calmly seized Oikawa’s wrist, twisting it sharply enough to make the brunet squeak in surprise and pain even as his knives clattered to the floor. Iwaizumi yanked hard on his wrist, hauling Oikawa off balance, then drove his knee into the taller man’s diaphragm hard enough that Daishou winced and hoped really, really hard that Iwaizumi was holding back enough not to bruise or crack Oikawa’s ribs. Oikawa wheezed, the sound becoming suddenly desperate and fearful as Iwaizumi tipped him over his knee. Oikawa landed flat on his back, and Iwaizumi calmly turned, swung his leg over Oikawa’s body, and dropped so his full weight landed on his stomach, his knees landing so Oikawa’s arms were pinned beneath Iwaizumi’s legs. Oikawa gasped and choked, and Iwaizumi unholstered his gun, then pressed the muzzle to Oikawa’s temple, his other hand resting on Oikawa’s throat. 

“He’ll get himself - and more importantly, me - killed if I take him into the field,” Iwaizumi snapped. Daishou sighed. 

“Hey! No fair, I was holding back!” Oikawa whined, his voice high and breathless because Iwaizumi was still sitting on him. 

“So was I,” Iwaizumi replied sharply. Oikawa’s eyes widened, and Daishou sighed again. 

“If you’re so worried about him not being up to your expectations, just train him yourself,” Daishou said. “You can have two weeks.”

“Two weeks wasn’t enough time to get Kyoutani into shape, and he was way closer to being ready than this idiot is,” Iwaizumi snapped. “I don’t want another partner, but if you’re going to make me take one on, then either send us out right away so he can get himself killed before I start to get to know him, or give me time to actually train him.” Oikawa scowled and started to say something - probably to protest that he wouldn’t get himself or anyone else killed - but Iwaizumi shifted his hand from Oikawa’s neck to cover his mouth instead. “I’m serious, Daishou. I refuse to lose another partner. So either give me cannon fodder or let me make sure he won’t die.” There was a moment of silence. 

“I’m sorry,” Daishou said. “I can’t afford to give you more than two weeks. I would if I could, you know that. I hate losing agents almost as much as you hate losing partners. As it is, you can either take that time and train him, or you can go on the next mission that comes up.” Iwaizumi was quiet for another long moment. 

“Two weeks is better than nothing,” Iwaizumi decided. “But for those two weeks, he’s mine, no interruptions.” Oikawa mumbled something, his voice muffled by Iwaizumi’s hand still over his mouth. Iwaizumi frowned and lifted his hand. “What?”

“I  _ said _ , Iwa-chan, I know I’m pretty, but-”

“What did you just call me?” Iwaizumi snapped, glaring down at the man still pinned beneath him. Oikawa blinked innocently. 

“What, you were just talking about keeping me  _ all _ to yourself for two whole weeks, and I can’t even give you a nickname?” Oikawa pouted. 

“I take it back,” Iwaizumi announced. “There’s no point in me training him, because I’m going to shoot him myself right now.” Oikawa suddenly seemed aware that Iwaizumi still had a gun pressed to his temple.

“No, you’re not,” Oikawa said, his eyes shifting from warm and teasing to dark and lethal. He lifted and shifted his legs, knocking Iwaizumi forward and sideways with his knees, twisting his whole body to break Iwaizumi’s hold on him. Iwaizumi rolled with the motion, but dragged Oikawa with him, dropping his gun to get a grip on Oikawa’s shirt as he kept rolling, bringing Oikawa over his body and then back down to the floor and ending up straddling the taller man again, this time shifting so he was far enough down Oikawa’s body that he was really just sitting on Oikawa’s thighs, keeping him from moving his legs enough to gain the same leverage he’d used before. Iwaizumi leaned forward and pinned both of Oikawa’s wrists with one hand. 

“You’re not as hopeless as I thought,” Iwaizumi admitted. “But you’re nowhere near ready for the field.” Oikawa scowled. 

“Just because you’re a brute who’s outrageously good at fighting-” he began. 

“We have two weeks to get you into shape,” Iwaizumi said. “That starts now. Since I already know your skill level - or lack thereof - with hand to hand combat, let’s see how your aim is,” he decided. Oikawa shot an incredulous look at Daishou, who just smiled politely. 

“He is the senior partner,” Daishou pointed out mildly. “And he hasn’t died yet. He’s also only ever injured when he’s working with a junior partner. It’ll be good for you two to get to know each other before you’re sent out, too.”

“Is this because I let Hanamaki and Matsukawa use your car for target practice?” Iwaizumi asked. “Come  _ on _ , Daishou, they were paintballs, not real bullets. Assigning me a new partner isn’t going to punish me for that.” 

“I was  _ in _ the car,” Daishou replied evenly. “They broke the windows and got paint  _ everywhere _ . You knew what they were going to do, and you didn’t stop them. And since I can’t really afford to punish you the way I would any other agent - taking you out of the field to stick you on mandatory administrative leave would be a waste of resources - so I’m definitely giving you a new partner in hopes you’ll take a bullet for him and I can enjoy that special scowl you get when you’re injured.” Iwaizumi eyed him, not sure if he was joking or not. “Damn it, Iwaizumi, you can’t afford to go solo anymore. My boss has been on my ass to find you a partner so you don’t wind up dead, and even if she wasn’t...you need someone to watch your back.” 

“I’ll watch my own back. And take care of this idiot’s sorry ass, and still get my missions done,” Iwaizumi growled. “But I’m not going to be happy about it, and I’m going to tell Hanamaki and Matsukawa about the time you and Kuroo-”

“If you do, I’ll send you on your next mission with butter knives and water guns,” Daishou threatened, voice still perfectly polite. Iwaizumi huffed, apparently either not willing to continue the argument or believing the threat was legitimate. 

“So...are you going to get off of me any time soon?” Oikawa asked, tugging at his wrists where Iwaizumi still gripped them. Iwaizumi raised an eyebrow at him, unimpressed, then sighed and got to his feet, then stepped to the side so Oikawa could sit up. Oikawa rubbed his wrists, frowning at Iwaizumi. “You’re a brute.”

“And you’re still going to get yourself killed the instant you’re on a mission,” Iwaizumi replied grimly. “Come on. Target practice, remember?”

“Can we get paintballs and use Daishou’s car?” Oikawa muttered under his breath. The corner of Iwaizumi’s mouth twitched upwards the slightest bit. 

“No. We’re going to the shooting range, then the obstacle course,” Iwaizumi informed him. “And then I’ll decide what kind of training we need to do for the next two weeks so you’ll hopefully survive whatever mission can be put off that long but not any longer.” He shot a glare at Daishou, who shrugged. 

“Who knows?” he mused. “Maybe if you two trash my car, I’ll send you to Antarctica, and we’ll see how you like nothing but penguins for company.” 

“There’s nothing in Antarctica that would give you the excuse you would need to send us there,” Iwaizumi replied confidently. “The worst you can do is Siberia, or possibly Australia or a rainforest. The idiot here looks like he’s afraid of big spiders and humidity.” Daishou and Iwaizumi stared each other down for a moment, and Oikawa deeply regretted whatever life choices he had made that had earned him the dubious honor of being Iwaizumi’s partner. 

“Fine, fine. Better head to the shooting range soon, though, or the obstacle course won’t be there by the time you get to it. Kuroo and Bokuto got back this morning, and you know how much those two love to destroy literally everything,” Daishou said, a slight frown disrupting the polite expression he’d maintained so far. Iwaizumi grimaced, then seized Oikawa’s upper arm and hauled him towards the door. 

“I am  _ not _ missing out on my last chance to enjoy Kunimi’s latest obstacle course before those two destroy it,” Iwaizumi muttered under his breath. Oikawa blinked in surprise. 

“Kunimi? I think I met him on my way in. He looked really sleepy,” Oikawa commented. 

“Yeah. Hanamaki says that’s what makes him so good at designing courses and stuff,” Iwaizumi replied. “Kunimi wants everyone else to be as tired as he is.” Iwaizumi let go of Oikawa’s arm as they entered the hallway, and silence fell between them. 

“Hey, Iwa-chan?” Oikawa hummed. Iwaizumi scowled. 

“Don’t call me that,” he ordered. “Why did you even think of calling me that, anyway?” Oikawa just shrugged and gave him a sly grin. 

“Oh, I have my reasons,” Oikawa assured him. “Who’s Kyoutani?” Iwaizumi stopped walking. Oikawa continued for a few steps, then turned and eyed him thoughtfully. 

“Kyoutani was my partner,” Iwaizumi said, his voice losing the angry edge it had maintained since he’d laid eyes on Oikawa. Instead, his words sounded almost hollow. “One of several that didn’t last more than a couple of missions. But he made it the longest, even longer than my first partner, Ennoshita.” 

“How many partners have you had?” Oikawa asked, uncertainty creeping into his tone. Iwaizumi shrugged. 

“Partners overall, or partners that lived past their first mission with me?” Iwaizumi asked. 

“The numbers are different?” Oikawa guessed, regretting his damned need to needle people and find out about their past. Iwaizumi sighed and ran a hand through his hair. 

“Yeah. Yeah, they’re different,” he answered after a second. Oikawa almost asked what the numbers were, but Iwaizumi dropped his hand to his side and strode past him before he could decide how to phrase the question. “Come on. Let’s try to make sure you’re in the second category, not just the first.” Oikawa’s eyes widened, and he shook off his thoughts before turning to practically skip after Iwaizumi. 

“Aw, Iwa-chan, you do care!” he cooed, catching up to the other agent and throwing his arm over Iwaizumi’s shoulder. Iwaizumi reacted instinctively, seizing Oikawa’s wrist, bending forward, and throwing Oikawa over his shoulder. Oikawa landed in a heap on the floor and sighed. 

He  _ really _ wasn’t looking forward to training with this guy for two weeks, not when he’d ended up on the ground this many times already. Iwaizumi stared down at him for an instant, and Oikawa thought he almost looked apologetic. 

“This is why you’re going to get us both killed,” Iwaizumi informed him, all traces of apology gone from his expression. Then he stepped over Oikawa and continued on his way. Oikawa muttered something under his breath about brutes and outrageous fighting skills as he hauled himself to his feet and trailed after Iwaizumi. He had a feeling that the gap between the number of partners Iwaizumi had worked with and the number that had survived more than one mission was big enough to haunt even someone with as much experience as Iwaizumi had, and Oikawa gathered from the way Iwaizumi acted and talked about his partners that the number of them that had survived at all was either zero or pretty close to it.


End file.
